


Veneration

by Klarahhh



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gangsters, Familiars, M/M, alternate universe- familiars, gang leader yuuri katsuki, veterinarian yuri plisetsky
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-18
Updated: 2016-12-30
Packaged: 2018-09-09 15:52:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8898103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Klarahhh/pseuds/Klarahhh
Summary: The uprising that sent the country into turmoil ceased forty years ago; the government bled itself dry trying to keep everything under control. Now they're unreliable and spread too thin trying to fix infrastructure and foreign relations with scorned countries. Average citizens are vulnerable and seek protection in any form they can: gangs. Each district is 'protected' by a gang which seems to be continuously locked in a turf war with its neighbor. Yuri Plisetsky and his familiar wanted no part in any of it; its a shame they never found the power to dictate their own life.





	1. Recluse

Familiar- (N) An anthropomorphic entity that can only be perceived by its human counterpart during their pre pubescent stages; they then become discernable in early adolescence.

Rupturing- (V) The forced severing of the bond between a familiar and their partner with a procedure that often causes excruciating pain and life-long delusions. This procedure has been banned in all countries for forty years. To see more on the Hilltop Massacre….

Monowight- (N) From the words Mono and Wight, a monowight is a person born without a connection to a familiar. It is a rare occurrence and should not be treated as a monstrosity. If you out anyone you know feels this was that could lead them to harm please call 1-800-***....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A pale hand shot from underneath bulky, overstuffed blankets as a loud, continuous noise penetrated the room. With one stop, followed instantly by the sound of shattering metal, silence once again filled the air as the bed’s occupant grumbled incoherently in annoyance before straightening up on the cheap mattress. He lazily rubbed at his bleary eyes and stifled a yawn as he started to slowly disentangle himself. 

The floor was cool, like most of District Eight was nowadays, but Yuri paid no attention as he clumsily stumbled his way through the cluttered apartment as fatigue settled heavily upon his petite shoulders. He spared no thought to rousing Aiolos; the feline familiar slept as though she was sleeping beauty, and only something life-altering could wake her. Yuri scoffed at the childish idea sprung into his head. Morning were just a routine: wake up, break something in thinly veiled anger, and gaze in the mirror at a boy he couldn’t ever hope to recognize. It was a continuous loop with no warmth, no familiarity, and no purpose. He wondered whether or not the dreary atmosphere would finally succeed in suffocating him if he just let go of the one thing keeping him anchored in this almost post-apocalyptic like country. Instead, he just held onto the delusion that everything would be okay. Time was the only thing everyone needed.

He always tried to never recant the past. The past was a deep well, and he no longer had any aid in trying to climb back out. However, on days like these, where the dew on the windows capture the tays, and the sky could actually be gazed upon without being obstructed by industrialist waste, he couldn’t help but think of his grandpa. Nothing could compare to the man’s Piroshkis and the decadent smell that would float through the room, or the way his tastebuds would scream in delight as every bite brought in a new flavor. Moments like these were bittersweet.

“Yuri, you can’t keep doing this to yourself”

Yuri jumped in surprise as his head whipped around to glance around at the once vacant bathroom. His heart beat faster until he felt tiny claws scramble up his back and rest comfortably on his shoulders. Aiolos, currently in the form of a gunmetal colored Singapura, purred as she nipped at his shoulders and brushed her tail against his cheeks.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he took a deep breath, “You have to stop doing that.”

“I’ll stop sneaking up on you when you stop blaming yourself for something you couldn’t control, Yuratchka,” the familiar smoothly replied.

Yuri quickly turned away from his other half’s haunting eyes. He knew it wouldn’t help; the mental bond they shared ensured secrets were never kept. Aiolos hopped off his shoulders and onto the tile before brushing her head against his feet in a form of apology. She understood that it had only been a meager amount of months since Nikolai’s death, and she wasn’t eager to rub raw wounds but it had to be done.

“You and I both know I’ll never be ready to talk about this, Ai. Stop.”

Without another word, he exited the bathroom and made a beeline for the kitchen. After hastily putting together a sandwich, Yuri stuck it in his mouth and sat on the couch. One flick of the wrist and a press of a button is all it takes to bring the television to life. It wasn’t a normal occurrence to have to rickety, old piece of outdated technology to actually be in use but he needed a distraction. 

“Violence in the districts is at an all time high! District Eight and Nine seem to be locked in some kind of turf war!”

He switched the channel.

“More familiars have been murdered as of late. The police still refuse to comment on whether or not these killing have any relation to Daniel Key. Is there another copycat killer on our hands?”

The screen went black as Yuri finally decided it was time to enter back into reality. Russia would never be the same, even though he couldn’t truly remember what the same was, and it was time he accepted that. Crime would always be prevalent and unending. 

“Ai, we gotta go. JJ may be too stupid, and forget how to open the door again. Somehow. I hate him,” he sighed as slipped his feet into leopard print shoes.

“You know we need his help to run the Vet, Yuri,” Aiolos sing-songed, quietly shifting into snow leopard and trotting towards the door. “He’s like a brother to you.”

“I’d rather chop my arm off than admit that!!” 

The door was yanked open as the angry blond stomped down the stairs. He ignored the laughter trailing behind him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dilapidated was the only word that could be used to describe any part of the District Eight. Gentrification was what the area sorely needed, but then again didn’t everywhere? No one had the money for it anyways. The government was to busy and the gangs were only for protection not renovation. Yuri still couldn’t believe he was being protected by the very people who ruined his life. 

Every building was a looming structure that cast a shadow in which shadows had the ability to hide. In those shadows lurked the possibility of a gang member, a dead body, or ,most frequently, an abandoned familiar. 

Those thoughts were quickly wiped away as Yuri unlocked the door to the building formerly owned by his grandpa; the veterinarian building was modest and unassuming at best. A comfortable atmosphere to put everyone at ease.

“Plisetsky! Someone’s a little late aren't they!” he heard not one minute after stepping in.

Oh how he loathed that voice.

“It’s not like you have room to talk, JJ,” Yuri responded smoothly after slipping on some scrubs.

“Don’t worry how I do things! I like to keep it….JJS TYLE!” the older male yelled exuberantly. 

Aiolos made a long rumbling sound that originated from deep within her belly in an imitation of laughter. She couldn’t understand why her partner found the man so annoying. He was quite the personality.

Yuri ignored JJ’s response and turned towards the man’s familiar, “Good morning, Nadia. I hope the pills I subscribed helped you rest well?”

The monkey curled his tail around the blonde’s arm causing him to smile. It was generally taboo to share physical contact with a familiar that didn’t belong to them, but JJ was never one to follow rules. Neither was Yuri if Aiolos got the chance to put in her two cents. Before the Aiolos could teasingly comment on the ‘betrayal’ she felt due to the undertones of the affection between Yuri and Nadia, the bell rung, and all sense of warmth dripped from both the males faces. They had a long day ahead of them.

“Excuse me,” the woman’s voice was frail and uncertain, “I know this is...unconventional, but my son he-he...the hospital won’t look at him.”

JJ was the first to respond, in a fakely sweet tone, “Ma’am, where is the boy?”

The boy in question was tucked behind his mother's legs. His eyes were sunken in, and he looked like he hadn’t slept in days with more bags under his eyes then Yuri had the time to count. His legs were noodles as he visibly struggled to stay upright. An occasional cough was heard as Yuri took time to survey him. He was sick; Yuri didn’t want to use up his scarce resources to fix that.

“We’ll take a look at him!” 

JJ looked happy as he spoke and bent down to look the boy in the eyes. The canadian even made a show of brandishing his stethoscope. Never before had Yuri ever wanted to punch the man so much in his life. Sensing his ire, JJ quickly pat Yuri on his back to placate him. Then he proceeded to take the boy to an adjoining room somewhere to his left. 

The mother turned to him, “Thank you. I know this isn’t what you usually do….but the neighborhood always spoke so kindly of Nikolai. Said he treated broken bones. I...I didn’t have anywhere to go. We can’t even afford the gang’s doctor.”

Yuri just stared at her blankly, surprised by her straightforwardness. With a quick nod, he tried to turn away from her and follow JJ but was stopped once again by the sound of her voice.

“When Nikolai died many of thought this was all over, Y’know? I’m sorry it had to be like this, but I wanted to thank you for carrying on his legacy. He was an amazing man, and I can see a little of him in you—”

“There’s no reason to thank me. I couldn’t demolish it or leave it without use.” He cut her off. It was mentally taxing to see bits and pieces of his grandfather at every turn, he didn’t want to be compared to him too.

Mondays were always busy, he didn’t have time to dally around with every patient that entered the room. At least, that’s what he told himself in response to Aiolos’ reproachful look.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The moon was the centerpiece of the dark sky as its light lit the building and streets below. At this time, Yuri finally had the peace and quiet he desired. Running an understaffed establishment was taxing, but at the very least the people started to trickle in less as skies were painted in darker hues of blues and black. Patient numbers were average that day, and the only irregular patient they had was the mother and her child. Most of it was just sick familiars who were just weakening their system due to being over worried with the familiar killings and their partners already shoddy mental state; kids were always too easily affected by the atmosphere around them.

Yuri was so focused he almost missed the buzzing of his phone. 

“Hello?” there was a yawn as he slipped the cool metal under his shoulder length hair.

“Yuri? You sound tired...are you sleeping well?”

He froze at the frazzled sound if his sister's worried voice. He hadn’t heard from since the falling out at his grandpa’s funeral. Aiolos stiffened beside him feeling the abrupt shift in his mood.

“Yuratchka? Are you there—”

“Don’t call me that!” he screamed.

She had no right. Not after the words she said. Yuri only wondered why she bothered calling him now. The woman made it pretty clear she wanted nothing to do with him and his ‘habits.’

“I wanted to apologize. What I said wasn’t right. We were both grieving.” Her voice was staticy.

The phone line was silent as Yuri busied himself with preparing to lock up the building. “ Why’d you leave?”

“I have no answer for that.”

Yuri quietly hung up. Aiolos let out a loud purr and began to wrap around his neck in silence. He appreciated the effort. After telling JJ goodbye, he stepped out into the night air.

The tranquility was only short lived before a hand roughly grabbed at Yuri’s thin shoulders. With an expletive already sitting upon the tip of his tongue, Yuri spun around only to be met with the grins of three smiling figures.

“What’s a pretty lil thing like you doing out here all by your lonesome, boy?” Jock One asked.

In true Yuri fashion, he flipped the man off. It wasn’t the brightest idea, but District Eight wasn’t known for its tough criminals. Everyone here was all bark and no bite. 

“Oh, this one is fiesty!”

“Lets rough him up a bit!”

Shooting pain blossomed near his forehead; the world became more blurry. The voices of the three men blended into one mangled mess. He didn’t think as he heard Aiolos growl and mentally push for him to run. He couldn’t. His feet were too heavy and his mouth felt as though full of cotton.

The pain he felt on his left side didn’t originate from his own body. It was too distant; he instantly knew Aiolos had tried to protect him and received only pain from it. He doesn’t remember calling out for help.


	2. Massacre

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, Lets just say that episode 12 was a good one ah! Anyways, Victor and Yuuri are here! So is Otabek, but I guess you could have already guessed that? I'd also like to say that at the start of every chapter I'm going to have a definition of sorts...a peek into the history of my world. Well..enjoy!

Hilltop

 

Hilltop Massacre: On March First, 2027, Daniel Key escaped from the Hilltop General Hospital while under the watchful eye of Nobel Peace Prize winner Reed Stark. Key, in a hallucinogenic bout of rage, started to disturb the peace of numerous citizens with no clear intent until he laid eyes on a young teens familiar; he then proceeded to suffocate it before bludgeoning the teen to death after incapacitating the parents. After escaping the scene of one the most brutal murders in Hilltop’s history, he remained at large for twenty-two hours. When found, he was cradling a bag of eight dead familiars as he whispered his praise to each and every one. The death toll, not counting the familiars, was three women, two children, one teen, and one elderly; the eighth victim was never found. Daniel Key later died in prison, and Reed Stark is facing three executive life sentences in District Eight or unlawful, deadly experiments and manslaughter.   
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Every breath Yuri took felt like needles going up his nose that managed to get caught somewhere deep within his lungs, only offering pain and no release. Nerve endings within his small body all came to life and multiplied every feeling exponentially; he could feel everything and nothing at the same time. Tears freely fell from the corners of his eyes as he tried to ignore the blows raining down upon his arms and legs. He hated this. Hated the feeling of being weak. Hated the feeling of being at other people mercy because he had staunchly refused to take self-defense classes quoting that he had no use for them. Now he knew he was going to die for it. Yuri Plisetsky, one of the handful of medically trained professionals left in District Eight, was going to die in an alleyway alone because he couldn’t keep his mouth shut. 

 

He barely registered the string of curses that flew out of the mouth of one of the assailants as the man was roughly pulled away from him. Yuri was barely cognizant enough to unfurl himself from the fatal position. Quickly regaining enough to look up through jaded, bleary eyes, Yuri was perplexed at the scene laid out in front of him. Black. It was truly the only discernible color out of the jumbled mess he continued to process. Concussion, maybe? There was no way to find out without escaping the alley first.

 

Drawn back into reality by a pained grunt, Yuri quickly tried to draw himself onto his feet. His knees wobbled and his bones creaked, but he felt a but of gratification at the success. A particularly loud sound of metal against brick drew him out of his thoughts once again. Looking to his right he noticed a knife lodged deep within a brick wall. 

 

Jock One was livid as he shook his fingers to get rid of newly blossomed pain. “Who the hell are you, glasses? You ain’t got no business here. Trust me.” 

 

The man in question only gave off a grunt before reeling his arms back in preparation to deliver another punch. Yuri held is breath in anticipation as he watched the man glide through motions as if he was dancing on water. Tan skin and rippling muscles covered in leather was the only thing he could pick out as the man delivered blows harder than Yuri had previously received; it was mesmerizing. He couldn’t recall how long he stood there just being enraptured by the sight of the mysterious man who fought with the ferocity of Ares. He only inflicted blows, yet he didn’t receive any. 

 

When the man turned to gaze at him, Yuri sucked in a breath. 

 

“Are you...okay?” he asked. 

 

The blonde didn’t respond and just continued to stare back into Hazel eyes. He flinched when a hawk perched itself upon the tanned mans shoulder. 

 

“You shouldn’t be out here right now, Yuri.” he continued, proceeding to move forward.

 

“How do you—”

 

“You’re a doctor. Of course everyone knows your name.”

 

Apparently attraction and politeness level didn’t coincide. Regardless of the fact that the man had just saved his life, Yuri couldn’t stand the interruption. He’d just almost been beaten within an inch of his life, he wanted some respect. Ready to tell him off, the blonde was just about invade his personal space and tell him off, but the person of his current ire stumbled and fell forward. Before long his “savior” was out cold and resting uncomfortably on his shoulder as, what Yuri assumed to be, his familiar soared above. 

 

Appearing out of nowhere, a slightly bruised Aiolos nipped at Yuri’s shoulders. “Who is that?”

 

Yuri shook his head before draping the man’s arms across his shoulders and hefting him up. The fleeting thought that the man was truly nothing but solid, thick muscle only entered his mind once. Maybe Five. It was a good thing the only person that could judge him was currently baby kitten trotting at his side as he dragged a stranger through the grimy streets of District Eight.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
“Where are we?”

 

Yuri immediately pivoted at the sound of the voice. He couldn’t help the cold bite laced into his voice as he answered. “I’m a doctor. You passed out. Take a wild guess Mr. Knight In Shining Leather.”

 

Leather, as Yuri had taken to calling him, cracked a small smile. He then made to stand only to have Aiolos growl in his general direction.

 

“You can’t move yet, Leather. I’m not done,” Yuri tried to be reassuring. “ Ah, your familiar is in the next room. Safe. Don’t worry.”

 

The moments that followed were quiet. Yuri worked methodically on the taciturn man, and he silently watched as Aiolos kept glancing at the patient with wide, questioning eyes. 

 

“Tell me your name so I can be one hundred percent sure your memory is intact, and that you won’t need further medical attention at a better facility.” Yuri spoke authoritatively. 

 

“It’s Otabek. Otabek Altin.” 

 

Otabek then took it upon himself to get off the table while discarding the cut shirt left on his body. He could only assumed the doctor had done it to have access to a cut he obtained from a previous scuffle. Otabek stood with a smile that temporarily blinded the younger male despite it only being a slightly larger uptick of the mouth than before. 

 

“Hey, Leather. Turn around so I can actually make sure my patient isn’t gonna bleed internally from back wounds or something. I’m not even sure how you got the one in front.” Yuri uttered with the flip of a hand.

 

Otabek did as he was told.

 

An eerie quietness filled the room; Yuri’s eyes were glued to the small of Otabek’s back gazing at an orthodox tattoo. Yuri’s lips thinned instantly as his eyes solidified into a firm glare. Otabek turned his head in question before stilling at the look being projected his way.

 

“Get out, ” Yuri felt as though he couldn’t breathe, “Get the fuck out.”

 

Otabek took a step towards him only to have sharp, feline teeth sink into his bicep. He quickly shook her off and turned his attention back to Yuri with confusion swelling in his eyes.

 

“Get. The. Fuck. Out. My Grandfather didn’t treat thugs and neither will I. You aren’t going to taint this establishment. I won’t let you.” 

 

Only one last glance was shared before Otabek decided to respect Yuri’s wishes. Otabek chose not to answer the questions his familiar threw his way regarding the ‘pretty boy with the soldier eyes.’

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

The gang headquarters was always monotone; it was to reflect the doom this district has been thrust into for as long as most everyone could remember since mortality dropped. Pressure that was put on a person’s shoulder as they step through the door could only be described as oppressive due to the fact it carried the weight of all the people they had sworn to ‘protect.’ Regardless of the fact that protection wasn’t free. The silence that trailed after each member like the ghost of a lost, abandoned child served as a reminder that a person’s life could end instantly; there is no escape from death. What always seemed to haunt everyone were the reflective surfaces made of sleek, black Onyx. When a member stared at those, it was impossible to miss their own dead eyes. 

 

Otabek both loathed the building and loved it simultaneously. It was his home, or something close enough to it. Otabek had always believed that Home was a place where you felt most comfortable and free. He had once truly believed nothing was more freeing than being able to walk halls and split people apart as they scrambled to give you room. Wrong was the only word he now used to describe those fleeting thoughts. Each step was heavier than the next as he trudged towards his leader’s office. The anger that radiated from the place was always palpable, and he doesn’t want to have it focused on him.

 

Otabek took in a breath as his calloused hand gripped the door handle and unceremoniously tugged it down in one fluid motion. He then stepped passed the two guards stationed inside, ignoring their presence completely. This situation was a periodic one and he was well versed in handling the situation. After wiping all emotion from his face, Otabek calmy met the analytical gaze of his boss: Yuuri Katsuki. The man, unassuming at first glance, had the eyes of a killer, and the cords of his muscles were so tightly wound he could snap at any minute. When Yuuri sat like that, as if he was the lead in an Edgar Allen Poe play, he commanded respect. Otabek always gave it to him.

 

“Ah, Beka! You’ve returned to us, and surprisingly you’re in one piece,” Viktor slung an arm around his shoulders,” Did you meet up with Phichit? Who fixed you up?”

 

Otabek snuck a glance towards Yuuri silently asking for permission to speak. The couple, while ‘nice’ enough, were still his superiors, and favoritism wasn’t guaranteed to lead to his continued safety if he was ever too informal.

 

“No, sir. Yuri Plisetsky.” Otabek decided to keep it brief in an attempt to swiftly end the conversation.

 

“Oh? Why, is Phichit not good enough?” Yuuri intoned for once sounding generally curious.

 

Otabek was taken back unsure of how to answer. He didn’t want to mention how he had saved the boy’s life and walked away with being repaid. Medical attention wasn’t an approved form of payment on any gang’s prerequisites. Luckily he was saved from answering as Viktor’s canine familiar decided to make his presence known.

 

“Viktor, is it truly wise to question the boy when he can barely stand?” the Caucasian Ovcharka asked as his eyes glinted with malice. 

 

Victor only glared at the animal as if it was the root of all his evils. Otabek believed that in a way it was; the bloodthirsty hound’s personality never mixed with Victor’s calm one.

 

“He did a good job. Maybe Phichit needs company. Could he be useful to us?” Yuuri asked completely disregarding the battle between his other half and his familiar.

 

“No!” 

 

The force of which he replied stopped everyone in their tracts. Yuuri’s eyes easily slipped into a glare at the outburst, and his snake slithered from underneath his sleeve with a bloodthirsty interest. Victor quickly went back to his position beside his lover. 

 

“Altin, I believe you should apolo—” the white haired man started.

 

“No,” Yuuri cut him off in the middle of his sentence. “We trust Beka-chan don’t we? If he believes that Plisetsky isn’t beneficial to us currently we will believe him. That could always change. Dismissed.”

 

Otabek left the room with a heavy sense of foreboding.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

The sky was swatched in fading hues of pink and purple. Victor liked how the background complimented his boyfriends pale skin as they lounged on the deep scarlet king bed. His fingers traced small circles on the other male's hand while humming softly.

 

“Damnit!”

 

Victor merely raised an eyebrow at Yuuri’s exclamation. His outbursts have been a regular installment in their lives since the recent uptick in gang activity. The Russian born man proceeded to take two pale hands into his own and kiss each calloused knuckle. 

 

“Yuuri, you shouldn’t stress yourself out so much.” He sing songed.

 

“My men are dying. Hell even Otabek got hurt on the job!” was the terse reply.

 

“You stressing isn’t going to solve this.”

 

“There’s a goddamn familiar killer running loose too!” Yuuri couldn’t help but shout and instantly regretted it.

 

Victor’s eyes turned cold. He gave one glance to Yuuri before slowly getting off the plush bed. Scattering papers eliminated the still silence; Victor knelt in front of the raven haired male.

 

“Mors,” he called to his familiar, “You know what to do. Yuuri hear needs to learn to relax.”

 

Mors quickly pinned the Yuuri familiar: Fractus.

 

“It’s been awhile since you’ve loosened up. Eh, Ka-chan?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for sticking to the end! I apologize, again, for the slowness of the plot. Also shoutout to Finalay for reading basically all my fics. Mvp!


	3. Tragedy

The Authoritarian War: 2017-2021. The activist group Cor, in an attempt to overthrow a ‘weak’ and ‘malleable’ government, launched an attack near the capital on January seventh, 2017. Officials were quick to respond. Officials were quick to respond; however, too many lives were lost and some government officials remained unaccounted for. Cor and the Department of Internal Safety and Integrity were locked in a standstill as anarchy and violence fluctuated within throughout the nation of Russia. The four year struggle ended in thousands of lost lives, displaced families,and orphaned children. Disease then took more lives as hospitals became overcrowded and understaffed while starvation swept through the country like a virus. The government had defeated Cor, but some still wonder who truly won the war.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Other than the death of his grandfather, Yuri had never experienced true tragedy in his short lifetime. In his twenty short years, the very edge of boyhood, he had only experienced the feeling of helplessness dipped in the essence of despair once. He never thought he could have the hope of forgetting the piteous eyes that flicked his way while they tried to seem as though their conversations revolved around anything that wasn’t him. Experience has taught him that ‘time healing all wounds’ was a mere pleasantry for fictitious hope. 

Yuri didn’t understand why anyone would spout such fallacies in the face of others as a form of comfort until today. He supposed it had something to do with the way dried tear tracks framed their face due to tears halted flow from lacrimal ducts running dry. Maybe it was the denial swimming in glassy eyed, empty stares. Most likely, in Yuri’s uninformed opinion, it was the age of the person.The knowledge that one specific event would be a heavy weight upon their frail shoulders for years to come, and they would be forever changed.

Those traits, those sad, hapless traits, were the only features he could see in the sea of people waiting for him outside the Veterinarian doors. He couldn’t move; even Aiolos was speechless for once in her life. The people were moaning. Pure agony. Suffering. Children and adults stared at him with hope. Somehow believing he had the power to act and so something. One woman was cradling a bloodied bundle, and from here even he could see it was dead. Yuri had never wanted to run so far away and believe that reality wasn’t real in so long. The only thing running through his mind was wondering what the hell happened. Why were there people basically dying on his doorstep?

“Yuri….” Aiolos didn’t even try to get anymore words out.

Yuri let out a long suffering sigh. He was going to have to cut JJ’s vacation short; he hated to admit that whatever ‘this’ is, he couldn’t do it alone. Keys jingled as shaking fingers clasped around them. One step towards his building and all hell broke loss. The crowd broke away from each other as they began to thrust harmed loved ones towards him. Others yelled incoherent, unintelligible words in his face. Chaos. Yuri couldn’t even make it to the door.

“Stop! If you want help I need to be inside,” Yuri paused as he watched confliction rise in the eyes of some. “There is only me and one other. We can’t- I don’t. What happened?” 

The news was silent this morning. Eerily so. He truly had no clue why so many injured people showed up out of the blue. However, it was the wrong question to ask people started to yell again. At least they made a path was his only weary thought as he steeled himself for a rough day that seemed to have no end. Aiolos only wrapped around his arms tighter as he started the trek.

Some days Yuri was truly grateful for Jean-Jeaques leroy. While annoying and lazy, the man was nothing but efficient. He arrived in twenty minutes, which was usually a forty minute drive, and corralled the mass with friendly charm belonging only to him with ease. JJ categorized injuries based on pain and survivability then quickly had some form of ‘line’ set up as he compartmentalized himself and informed Yuri of what they could and couldn’t treat. The line of ‘couldn’ts’ was a lot longer than the ‘coulds.’ In the heat of the moment, Yuri sometimes forgot that in the end he truly specialized in familiar and animal care rather than that of the human anatomy. This wasn’t a true hospital; he couldn’t save everyone. Even if he prayed to the gods he had long ago forsaken.

From what Aiolos and Nadia had gathered, from conversing with the patient’s familiars, the events that led to the overflowing of hospitals and Yuri receiving the leftovers with nothing but clothes on their back and empty pockets was, in essence, a turf war. An agreement gone awry. 

District Eight and District Nine had never been particularly close, but when an agreement is mutually beneficial, who could turn such a thing down? District Nine would funnel necessary hospital supplies to the right organizations, and in return District Eight would smuggle out a decent labor force. Nadia claimed it all went to shit when the new, faceless leader of District Eight gained a sense of morality and deemed smuggling, drugs, and underage prostitution wrong. The arrangement ended a month before today, and nothing but snide remarks followed. Until approximately seven AM when a bomb went off downtown in the middle of the original shipment site: Chulanot Hospital. People wondered if District Eight could even recover from a downed hospital. They went from a total of four to three, not counting establishments such as the one Yuri owned. 

Aiolos then continued to say that the bomb was only the start. Twenty minutes later an armed gunman occupied their largest mall and made a show of his executions; he spouted off useless nonsense before taking his life while staring dead into the eyes of a newly orphaned child. The whole thing had the air of a funny stage play. Just one with no punchline.

Yuri didn’t want to hear anymore. A part of him wanted to stop Aiolos from continuing while the other part wanted to hear more so he could better fuel his hatred for gangs. Either choice would be selfish. Ignorance was bliss, and he truly missed the days where it was socially acceptable to protect yourself in a bubble of innocence.

The bare minimum that he begged Aiolos to give him about the last event was simply that the government no longer had to be worried about cleaning the homeless off the street, but fear not because they’d never be forgotten. Yuri thought she was right. How could you forget the people whose blood was used to broadcast a message: ‘This is what I call even, Katsuki.’ Nadia claimed no one was safe, and Yuri was inclined to believe her.

It would be a lie to proclaim that Yuri wasn’t happy when his ten minute break was over, and he once again had to tend to the endless sea of patients. He wanted the conversation to end a minute after it had started.

“Yuri, I don’t know what I can do for this girl, “ JJ seemed unsure as he spoke. “ I thought it was just a broken arm, but it may be infected.”

“Give her antibiotics.” Yuri responded uninterestedly. 

Surely they couldn’t be out soon? There has only been twenty five patients so far.

“Her familiars dieing. He’s as good as dead. There is nothing we can do.“ he uttered.

“You want me to break the news…” Yuri waited for a response at his words before speaking with a resigned tone. “Go get the next one.”

As expected, the child had bursted into tears. She bagging clinging onto her familiar as if it was a lifeline. The mother had shut down as the father started to yell in Yuri’s face. He yelled of incompetency and inhumanity. Yuri kept a straight face and calmly told him to leave. If the man didn’t do it of his own accord, someone in the waiting room would. As the girl walked out, tears framing her face, Yuri whispered that it would get better with time. Small, brown eyes met his own with disbelief. She thought he was full of bullshit too.

JJ quickly ushered the next person into the empty room, and closed the door. The blonde scanned the form before him. A beautiful face, minimal bruising, and a swelled stomach. He immediately did a restock of everything he just processed.

“Holy shit! Is she pregnant?” Yuri asked, genuinely baffled.

“Yuri!” JJ admonished.

“I don’t know how the fuck to deal with that!” Yuri exclaimed with no hint of remorse or acknowledgement of the amused look being thrown his way by the woman.

“He isn’t due for a few more months,” Yuri startled by the woman’s voice, “ I just want to make sure that the bruises around my stomach and arms wouldn’t affect him if they got infected.”

After checking over the woman to make sure nothing was life threatening, Yuri left her in JJ’s care and made a quick exit. Women scared him, and pregnant women were the most fearsome of them all. He was inwardly happy his preferences meant he wouldn’t ever have to deal with one in his own relationships.

His musing were interrupted as he laid eyes on a familiar face. No pun intended. It was the mother from a few days ago. With the son JJ had instinctively volunteered to treat without any regards to their dwindling resources at the time. She looked relatively unharmed so the blonde cocked his head to the side in confusion. Without another thought, he quickly made his way over. Yuri made no sound as he stared into her eyes. Wordlessly, she stepped aside to reveal the same shaking boy looking sicker than he did the last time.

“Doctor Leroy said to come back if he didn’t recover.” she supplied with a tremor in her voice.

Yuri hoisted the boy into his arms as he told JJ to grab another patient in his stead. The silence was heavy as Yuri looked the boy over with the instruments his grandfather had gathered over time. It couldn’t have been more than ten minutes, but it felt like a lifetime. All results led to the same conclusion. He just kept delivering bad news. 

“Infringed relation,” he started in a detached voice, “ A rare condition in which the bond between familiar and human has been tampered with in some way that causes the feedback between the two to be corrupted. One party is often left bedridden and sick which continues to deteriorate as each day passes. There has been no cure found which benefits both parties. In most cases, the familiar dies either due to being the affected party or in order to save the human.”

Yuri didn’t bother to waste time by skating around the subject. He was blunt; Nikolai had always said he lacked the necessary people skills when it came to breaking bad news, but Yuri always thought that wasting time was unnecessary. The woman’s grip on her son went slack as he began to wail. Yuri waited for her decision. Two minutes later and she gave him a nod before signing her name on papers that would seal her son’s fate. Yuri didn’t offer her condolences as she walked away trying to spare her son the sight. It would only be his fifth time killing a familiar, but he knew there was nothing he could say to make the situation any less heartbreaking. The cat let out a bloodcurdling screech as it died. Not due to pain, but due to the severing of a bond. How the boy’s mind and body reacted would be anybody’s guess.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The night didn’t end for Yuri and JJ until five AM the next day. They saved more patients than they lost, but that didn’t make it easier. Especially since Yuri was nursing a head splitting migraine. 

“Go home, Yuri,” JJ commanded.

“What if someone else shows up?” Yuri questioned.

“You wouldn’t be any help,” JJ rebuked.

Yuri scoffed before grabbing his jacket and chucking the keys in the direction of JJ’s head. He was a bit disappointed when it didn’t connect. The sun had started to rise when he stepped out and began to wander in the direction of his apartment.

“Yuri Plisetsky?” a voice from his right intoned.

The blonde quickly turned around to gaze into brown eyes framed by glasses and messy black hair.

“Yes?”

He barely registered the pain as his whole world went black.

**Author's Note:**

> Ahhh!! I've finally posted this. I always get really nervous when posting things. I apologize for the slow start and fact that this isn't beta read.


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